Beaty's comments about gays spark outrage

BARNSTABLE — A controversial elected Cape Cod representative's comments about gay people has sparked an angry backlash throughout the community and on Beacon Hill.

"I’m calling for Commissioner (Ron) Beaty to resign, I’m that upset,” said state Rep. Timothy Whelan, R-Brewster. “I don’t even know what else to say.”

Beaty has made a reputation for himself for inflammatory and controversial comments. On Tuesday, he posed a question on Twitter that many believed to be homophobic.

“Generally speaking, are gay politicians too self-absorbed and self-centered to adequately represent ALL of their constituents in a fair and equitable manner?” Beaty tweeted. .

The post comes less than a week after two openly gay elected officials who represent the Cape and Islands — state Sen. Julian Cyr, D-Truro, and state Rep. Sarah Peake, D-Provincetown — were named to leadership positions on Beacon Hill.

“I am disappointed to hear that Ron Beaty made such an uninformed statement regarding the value LGBTQ people bring to Cape Cod and our commonwealth,” Cyr said. “It appears he would prefer to spend his time as an elected official causing division and spreading disrespect.”

Cyr invited Beaty to work with him to address the Cape’s challenges and priorities.

State Sen. Viriato "Vinny" deMacedo, R-Plymouth, who represents the Cape with Cyr in the Senate, said he was shocked when he read the tweet. "I can't believe we're having this conversation," he said.

Peake, who has served in the House since 2007, did not want to "dignify Mr. Beaty's statement with a response, other than to say it demonstrates the depth of his ignorance and homophobia."

Dennis Selectman Robert Mezzadri also expressed his displeasure with Beaty.

“As an elected official who happens to be gay, I find that comment appalling and baseless,” he said.

Beaty, who has modeled his politics and style after President Trump, said he was not referring to any particular person in the tweet, but he “had people make some statements to me in recent weeks, so I thought I’d look for other people’s opinions on the matter.”

“I’m not picking on anybody in particular,” said Beaty in a voicemail message to the Times. “Regarding Julian Cyr, although I don’t necessarily care for some of his more liberal politics, I think he does a good job representing the district and constituents. Sarah Peake, I don’t even know her.”

Beaty did say he takes issue with Cyr and Peake on what he perceives to be a lack of action on “the shark and seal” matter, fearing there could be another tragedy this summer.

In his message to the Times, he did not address Whelan's call for his resignation.

Ronald Bergstrom, chairman of the three-member Barnstable County Board of Regional Commissioners, expressed concern that Beaty’s comments are damaging relationships with politicians locally and at the Statehouse — connections the county needs to be successful, he said.

“All I can say is that he doesn’t represent the view of Barnstable County and that we have a good working relationship with all of or delegation — gay or straight — and they are always available for us,” Bergstrom said. “I don’t think someone’s personal life has anything to do with working with their constituents.”

Leaders of the state’s major political parties were quick to respond on Tuesday.

"There is no place in the public arena for this kind of talk, and we cannot condone such outrageous behavior," said James Lyons, chairman of the Massachusetts Republican Party.

"Ron Beaty's comments on Twitter are abhorrent, and just the latest in a pattern of bigoted, sexist, xenophobic rhetoric, “ said Veronica Martinez, executive director of the Massachusetts Democratic Party.

“Unfortunately, Beaty and others like him have been emboldened by a state GOP that recently elected an anti-LGBTQ champion as its Chairman, and by a president who routinely advances discrimination and intolerance from the White House. Such hateful language has no place in Massachusetts or anywhere else,” Martinez continued.

Deborah Shields, executive director of Boston-based MassEquality, an LGBTQ rights advocacy group, called Beaty’s tweet “mean-spirited and unnecessary hate speech” that could affect the Cape’s reputation as a LGBTQ-friendly tourist destination and hurt the local economy.

“There’s no reason for this type of discourse from a politician,” she said. “Given all that Julian Cyr and Sarah Peake have done for the Cape, it’s horrifying.”

Beaty, who served a 14-month stay in a federal prison for threatening to kill President George H.W. Bush and other politicians in the early 1990s, is a prolific generator of contentious content on Twitter.

On Tuesday alone, he tweeted that climate change was fake, that the Democratic Party “spawns deviant hate-filled persons who need to find their way back to God before their souls are condemned to hell for all of eternity,” and that former Gov. William Weld was a “much bigger drunk” than current Gov. Charlie Baker.

Since taking office in 2017, Beaty has created controversy over disparaging social media commentary about the #MeToo movement and Parkland school shooting survivor David Hogg. He has also received national attention by advocating the use of baited drum lines to catch and kill great white sharks.

"I pretty much only do what President Donald Trump does relative to his social media postings," Beaty wrote in a follow-up email Tuesday night. "If it is good enough for our president, whom I support 100 percent, then it is good enough for me as well."

— Follow Geoff Spillane on Twitter: @GSpillaneCCT.

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